Main menu

The melting of the polar glaciers is not only wreaking havoc on sea levels and ocean currents — it's also releasing "ancient microbes" and other life forms that have been trapped in the ice for hundreds of thousands of years, says Scientific American's Cheryl Katz. "Once thought to be too harsh and inhospitable to support any living thing, the ice sheets are now known to be a gigantic reservoir of microbial life," Katz says.